Fluid delivery pumps are commonly used in, for example, patient care systems for infusing medication to a patient or for clinical testing and experimentation purposes. A variety of mechanized fluid delivery system designs are known in the art. Generally speaking, these designs combine a valve mechanism to sequester the flow in one direction (e.g., towards a fluid source) and a pump mechanism to deliver the flow in the other direction (e.g., towards a patient). The fluid being delivered is contained within a disposable portion that is fluidly isolated from a durable portion that delivers the pumping force.
Conventional mechanized fluid delivery systems suffer from certain operational setbacks. For example, fluid delivery is often noisy due to the movements of mechanized parts. Furthermore, because the pumping action is achieved by physical contact between the disposable portion and a pumping element of the durable portion, the risk of undesirable contamination of the durable portion due to leakage of medical fluid from the disposable portion exists. Also, due to mechanical wear and fatigue, fluid delivery systems often cannot be put into continuous use for a long period (e.g., greater than 96 hours run time). In certain patient care situations, it is undesirable or cumbersome to change fluid delivery equipment during long fluid delivery sessions. Furthermore, the amount of fluid pumped in each stroke in a conventional mechanized fluid delivery system cannot be changed while fluid delivery is ongoing.
There is a need for a better fluid delivery system that addresses one or more of these concerns. This and other needs are met by contactless fluid pumping methods and apparatuses disclosed in the present disclosure.